The present invention relates generally to a mechanism for attaching a decorative wheel trim to a motor vehicle wheel and more particularly to a wheel trim attachment system using stud extenders to attach a decorative wheel trim member to either a front or rear wheel without the removal of the existing lug nuts.
It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that vehicle owners desire a decorative wheel trim member that covers the existing motor vehicle wheel. Further, those skilled in the art will appreciate the fact that during inspection, the Department of Transportation requires that the conventional wheel of a truck covered by a wheel trim member be examined without having to jack the truck off the ground and remove the existing wheel lug nuts. It will be further appreciated by those skilled in the art that the Ford Motor Company and other motor vehicle manufacturers are requiring that wheel trim attachment members be placed on the existing wheel without removal of the lug nuts to improve safety. It will be further appreciated by those skilled in the art that the method of attachment must be the same for either a rear or front wheel. Also, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that on certain conventional wheels, there may be as little as one thread exposed on the existing wheel stud above the wheel lug nut. To this end, there have been several attempts to provide a method of attachment of a wheel trim member.
Canadian Patent No. 1,160,262, issued to Ladoceur, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,833,266, issued to Lamme, disclose the use of jam nuts as a means of attaching a wheel trim member to the existing wheel studs without the removal of the wheel nuts. However, this method of attachment can be used only when a low profile on the wheel trim member is desired. Ladoceur does not teach direct attachment to an existing stud and does not teach direct attachment if the existing stud does not have sufficient threads.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,632,465, issued to Cummings, discloses the use of a stud extender to be placed over each of the existing wheel studs. However, the application of Cummings is limited to the rear or drive wheel, because of the length of the stud extender. Cummings cannot be used on a front or leading wheel without the use of a stud extender of a different length and, in fact, calls for the removal of the original wheel lug nuts to attach the front wheel trim member. Cummings teaches neither direct attachment of a trim member by use of a jam nut nor use of a stud.
What is needed, then, is a wheel trim attachment member system that can be installed on either the front or rear wheel. Additionally, the wheel trim member must be attachable and removable without the removal of the existing wheel lugs. This wheel trim attachment member must be usable on a wheel having either an even or odd number of lugs. This wheel trim attachment member must be able to attach to an existing wheel stud even when very few threads are exposed above the conventional wheel lug. This access is presently lacking in the prior art.